NCJ Number
132378
Date Published
1990
Length
200 pages
Annotation
This analysis criticizes Switzerland for having become the world center of money laundering.
Abstract
Several factors have led organized drug cartels around the world to prefer Swiss banks over any others for their laundering operations: the U.S. crack-down on money laundering in the Americas; the easy international accessibility of the Swiss banking network; Swiss banking laws which protect the secrecy of bank accounts and account holders; the ease with which large amounts of cash can be deposited into a Swiss account; and the absence of laws against laundering of drug money. Corrupt leaders of third world countries such as the Philippines, Haiti, and Zaire also frequently deposit their illegally acquired funds in Swiss accounts. Frequently, the same transfer organizations handle both drug money and political transfers. To compound the problem, conflict of interest laws for elected Swiss politicians are lacking. Consequently, recent attempts at reforming Swiss banking laws have met with the resistance of those politicians who are also well-paid board members of major Swiss banks. The author is highly critical and even fears that some drug rings have gained influence over the Swiss establishment by means of financial incentives and physical threats.